Concept of Semiconductor Physics

Concept of Semiconductor Physics Prof. (Dr.) Pradeep Kumar Sharma Department of Physics University of Engineering & Management, Jaipur

OBJECTIVES: This course deals with an introduction to semiconductor Physics. SYLLABUS: Semiconductors: Intrinsic silicon, extrinsic n and p type silicon, mobility of carriers, carrier transport in semiconductors; pn junctions.

Semiconductor Physics The Semiconductor Industry Semiconductor devices such as diodes, transistors and integrated circuits can be found everywhere in our daily lives, in Walkman, televisions, automobiles, washing machines and computers. We have come to rely on them and increasingly have come to expect higher performance at lower cost. Personal computers clearly illustrate this trend. Anyone who wants to replace a three to five year old computer finds that the tradein value of his (or her) computer is surprising low. On the bright side, one finds that the complexity and performance of the today s personal computers vastly exceeds that of their old computer and that for about the same purchase price, adjusted for inflation. While this economic reality reflects the massive growth of the industry, it is hard to even imagine a similar growth in any other industry. For instance, in the automobile industry, no one would even expect a five times faster car with a five times larger capacity at the same price when comparing to what was offered five years ago. Nevertheless, when it comes to personal computers, such expectations are very realistic. The essential fact which has driven the successful growth of the computer industry is that through industrial skill and technological advances one manages to make smaller and smaller transistors. These devices deliver year after year better performance while consuming less power and because of their smaller size they can also be manufactured at a lower cost per device.

Introduction to Semiconductors Objective of the lecture: 1. Define a semiconductor no. of electrons in outer shell, location on periodic table, most commonly used ones etc. 2. Know the crystal structure of silicon, the cause and result of defects. 3. Understand intrinsic and extrinsic semiconductor behaviour, know how to affect this behaviour through doping. 4. Explain in detail what depletion regions are and how they are formed. 5. PN junction

Why semiconductors? SEMICONDUCTORS: They are here, there, and everywhere Computers, palm pilots, Silicon (Si) MOSFETs, ICs, CMOS laptops, anything intelligent Cell phones, pagers Si ICs, GaAs FETs, BJTs CD players AlGaAs and InGaP laser diodes, Si photodiodes TV remotes, mobile terminals Light emitting diodes (LEDs) Satellite dishes InGaAs MMICs (Monolithic Microwave ICs) Fiber networks InGaAsP laser diodes, pin photodiodes Traffic signals, car GaN LEDs (green, blue) taillights InGaAsP LEDs (red, amber) Air bags Si MEMs, Si ICs and, they are important, especially to Elec.Eng.& Computer Sciences

Introduction Semiconductors are materials whose electrical properties lie between Conductors and Insulators. Ex : Silicon and Germanium Give the examples of Conductors and Insulators! Difference in conductivity

Semiconductor Materials Elemental semiconductors Si and Ge (column IV of periodic table) compose of single species of atoms Compound semiconductors combinations of atoms of column III and column V and some atoms from column II and VI. (combination of two atoms results in binary compounds) There are also threeelement (ternary) compounds (GaAsP) and fourelements (quaternary) compounds such as InGaAsP.

Semiconductor materials

Semiconductor Materials The wide variety of electronic and optical properties of these semiconductors provides the device engineer with great flexibility in the design of electronic and optoelectronic functions. Ge was widely used in the early days of semiconductor development for transistors and diods. Si is now used for the majority of rectifiers, transistors and integrated circuits. Compounds are widely used in highspeed devices and devices requiring the emission or absorption of light. The electronic and optical properties of semiconductors are strongly affected by impurities, which may be added in precisely controlled amounts (e.g. an impurity concentration of one part per million can change a sample of Si from a poor conductor to a good conductor of electric current). This process called doping.

Solid state structures A crystalline solid is distinguished by the fact that atoms making the crystal are arranged in a periodic fashion. That is, there is some basic arrangement of atoms that is repeated throughout the entire solid. Thus the crystal appears exactly the same at one point as it does at a series of other equivalent points, once the basic periodicity is discovered. However, not all solids are crystals (Fig. 2); some have no periodic structure at all (amorphous solids), and other are composed of many small regions of singlecrystal material (polycrystalline solids). The periodic arrangement of atoms in crystal is called the lattice; the lattice contains a volume, called a unit cell, which is representative of the entire lattice and is regularly repeated throughout the crystal.

Cubic lattices: Solid state structures Unit cells for types of cubic lattice structure. Simple cubic (sc) Bodycentered cubic (bcc) Facecentered cubic (fcc) Diamond lattice unit cell, showing the four nearest neighbour structure The basic lattice structure for many important semiconductors is the diamond lattice, which is characteristic of Si and Ge. In many compound semiconductors, atoms are arranged in a basic diamond structure but are different on alternating sites. This is called a zincblende lattice and is typical of the IIIV compounds. The diamond lattice can be thought of as an fcc structure with an extra atom placed at a/4+b/4+c/4 from each of the fcc atoms.

Solid state structures The diamond lattice of silicon and germanium. The zincblende crystal structure of GaAs and InP Each atom in the diamond lattice has a covalent bond with four adjacent atoms, which together form a tetrahedron. This lattice can also be formed from two fcccubic lattices, which are displaced along the body diagonal of the larger cube in Figure by one quarter of that body diagonal. The diamond lattice therefore is a fcccubic lattice with a basis containing two identical atoms.

We shall investigate some of the important properties of electrons, with special emphasis on two points: (1) the electronic structure of atoms and (2) the interaction of atoms and electrons with excitation, such as the absorption and emission of light. By studying electron energies in an atom, we lay the foundation for understanding the influence of the lattice on electrons participating in current flow through a solid. Atoms and electrons One of the most valuable experiments of modern physics is the analysis of absorption and emission of light by atoms. For example, an electric discharge can be created in a gas, so that the atoms begin to emit light with wavelengths characteristic of the gas. The result of emission spectra experiments led Niels Bohr to construct a model for the hydrogen atom, based on the mathematics of planetary systems. If the electron in the hydrogen atom has a series of planetarytype orbits available to it, it can be excited to an outer orbit and then can fall to any one of the inner orbits, giving off energy corresponding to one of the lines seen in a spectrum.

The Bohr model To develop the model, Bohr made several postulates: 1. Electrons exist in certain stable, circular orbits about the nucleus. 2. The electron may shift to an orbit of higher or lower energy, thereby gaining or losing energy equal to the difference in the energy levels (by absorption or emission of a photon of energy hν). However, the simple Bohr model, which accurately described the gross features of the hydrogen spectrum, did not include many fine features. These features were described later by principles of quantum mechanics.

The Silicon Atom Finally, the work of Bohr, Boltzmann, Plank, Einstein and others has developed an understanding of the atomic structure which shows that electrons circle the nucleus in orbits having different associated energies. The electrons also spin on their own axes. The energy of electrons is quantised in that only certain discrete levels of energy can be possessed by electrons and no values in between these discrete levels are allowed. The levels exist in groups which are referred to as shells and there are subshells (l) within main shells (n). Silicon, Si, is a group IV material having an atomic number of 14. Consequently it has 14 positively charged protons and 14 neutrons in its nucleus. It has 14 orbiting negatively charged electrons: 2 in a full K shell; 8 in a full L shell and 4 in a halffull M subshell. With a half full outer subshell the atom has an affinity for 4 additional electrons to try to complete the outer subshell. The Pauli s Exclusion Principle states that no two electrons in an atom or molecule can share the exact same quantum specification. In practice, this means that no more than two electrons can share precisely the same orbit or energy level and the two must have opposite spins.

The Silicon Atom A covalent bond can be formed between two atoms which have only one electron in an outer orbit or energy level. In this case the individual electrons from the separate atoms at the same energy level orbit both atoms jointly as shown in figures. Both atoms essentially share the pair of electrons at the given energy level in the outer subshell, with the two electrons having opposite spins. This forms a bonding attraction between the two atoms which is not extremely strong but is nonetheless powerful and maintains a high degree of stability in the material. In the case of Silicon, each of the 4 outer electrons enters into a covalent bond with a neighbouring atom. A Covalent Bond Formed by the Sharing of Electrons in an Outer Energy Level

Silicon: our primary example and focus Atomic no. 14 14 electrons in three shells: 2 ) 8 ) 4 i.e., 4 electrons in the outer "bonding" shell Silicon forms strong covalent bonds with 4 neighbors The Silicon Atomic Structure Si 14 However, like all other elements it would prefer to have 8 electrons in its outer shell

Band theory of a solid A solid is formed by bringing together isolated single atoms. Consider the combination of two atoms. If the atoms are far apart there is no interaction between them and the energy levels are the same for each atom. The numbers of levels at a particular energy is simply doubled n=3 n=3 n=2 n=2 n=1 n=1 Atom 1 Atom 2 If the atoms are close together the electron wave functions will overlap and the energy levels are shifted with respect to each other. n=3 n=3 n=2 n=2 n=1 n=1 Atom 1 Atom 2 n=3 n=2 n=1 Atom 1 + 2

A solid will have millions of atoms close together in a lattice so these energy levels will creates bands each separated by a gap. Conductors: If we have used up all the electrons available and a band is still only half filled, the solid is said to be a good conductor. The half filled band is known as the conduction band. Insulators: If, when we have used up all the electrons the highest band is full and the next one is empty with a large gap between the two bands, the material is said to be a good insulator. The highest filled band is known as the valence band while the empty next band is known as the conduction band. n=3 n=2 n=1 Conduction band, half filled with electrons Valence band, filled with electrons Empty conduction band Valence band, filled with electrons Large energy gap

Semiconductors: Some materials have a filled valence band just like insulators but a small gap to the conduction band. At zero Kelvin the material behave just like an insulator but at room temperature, it is possible for some electrons to acquire the energy to jump up to the conduction band. The electrons move easily through this conduction band under the application of an electric field. This is an intrinsic semiconductor. Empty conduction band Valence bands, filled with electrons Small energy gap At zero Kelvin no conduction Conduction band, with some electrons Top valence band now missing some electrons So where are all these materials to be found in the periodic table? At room temperature some conduction

Semiconductor materials

Possible Semiconductor Materials Carbon C 6 Silicon Si 14 Germanium Ge 32 Tin Sn 50 1. Very Expensive 2. Band Gap Large: 6eV 3. Difficult to produce without high contamination 1. Cheap 2. Ultra High Purity 3. Oxide is amazingly perfect for IC applications 1. High Mobility 2. High Purity Material 3. Oxide is porous to water/hydrogen (problematic) 1. Only White Tin is semiconductor 2. Converts to metallic form under moderate heat Lead Pb 82 1. Only White Lead is semiconductor 2. Converts to metallic form under moderate heat

Brief introduction to Semiconductors (conductivity for Si depends on doping, Cu ~ 6E7 1 m 1 ) Think of a crystal matrix of silicon atoms (Si has 4 valence electrons).

Diamond lattice structure The diamond lattice can be thought of as an fcc structure with an extra atom placed at a/4+b/4+c/4 from each of the fcc atoms. Diamond lattice http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/file:diamond_cubic_animation.gif

The Silicon Atomic Structure Si 14 Silicon : It s a Group 4 element which means it has 4 electrons in outer shell However, like all other elements it would prefer to have 8 electrons in its outer shell

The Germanium Atomic Structure

Bonding of Si atoms This results in the covalent bonding of Si atoms in the crystal matrix A Covalent Bond Formed by the Sharing of Electrons in an Outer Energy Level

n=3 n=3 n=2 n=2 n=1 n=1 Atom 1 Atom 2 Discrete energy levels for 2 atoms separated by a large distance. Band Gap Energy Typical continuous band pictures at 0 K for different solid materials. Note that the band gap energy, E g for insulators is ~ 10 ev, while for metals it is close to 0 ev (1eV=1.6x10 19 J).

Electrons and Holes Si and Ge are tetravalent elements each atom of Si (Ge) has 4 valence electrons in crystal matrix T=0 all electrons are bound in covalent bonds no carriers available for conduction. For T> 0 thermal fluctuations can break electrons free creating electronhole pairs Both can move throughout the lattice and therefore conduct current.

Electronhole pairs in a semiconductor. The bottom of the conduction band denotes as E c and the top of the valence band denotes as E v. Electrons and Holes For T>0 some electrons in the valence band receive enough thermal energy to be excited across the band gap to the conduction band. The result is a material with some electrons in an otherwise empty conduction band and some unoccupied states in an otherwise filled valence band. An empty state in the valence band is referred to as a hole. If the conduction band electron and the hole are created by the excitation of a valence band electron to the conduction band, they are called an electronhole pair (EHP).

Silicon Lattice Structure At 0K, all electrons are tightly shared with neighbours no current flow Si Si Si Si Si Si Si Si Si + Si Si Si Si Adding heat (even to room temperature) allows some bonds to break, and electrons can flow Si + Si Free electron Si Si Si Vacancy left by electron. Overall Si charge on silicon is zero this hole must be positive Shares electrons with 4 neighbouring atoms 8 electrons in outer shell

Intrinsic Material A perfect semiconductor crystal with no impurities or lattice defects is called an intrinsic semiconductor. At T=0 K No charge carriers Valence band is filled with electrons Conduction band is empty At T>0 Electronhole pairs are generated EHPs are the only charge carriers in intrinsic material Since electron and holes are created in pairs the electron concentration in conduction band, n (electron/cm 3 ) is equal to the concentration of holes in the valence band, p (holes/cm 3 ). Each of these intrinsic carrier concentrations is denoted n i. Thus for intrinsic materials n=p=n i Electronhole pairs in the covalent bonding model in the Si crystal.

Intrinsic Material At a given temperature there is a certain concentration of electronhole pairs n i. If a steady state carrier concentration is maintained, there must be recombination of EHPs at the same rate at which they are generated. Recombination occurs when an electron in the conduction band makes a transition to an empty state (hole) in the valence band, thus annihilating the pair. If we denote the generation rate of EHPs as g i (EHP/cm 3 s) and the recombination rate as r i, equilibrium requires that r i = g i Each of these rates is temperature dependent. For example, g i (T) increases when the temperature is raised, and a new carrier concentration n i is established such that the higher recombination rate r i (T) just balances generation. At any temperature, we can predict that the rate of recombination of electrons and holes r i, is proportional to the equilibrium concentration of electrons n 0 and the concentration of holes p 0 : r i = r n 0 p 0 = r n i2 = g i The factor r is a constant of proportionality which depends on the particular mechanism by which recombination takes place.

Increasing conductivity by temperature As temperature increases, the number of free electrons and holes created increases exponentially. Intrinsic Concentration (cm^3) 1 10 17 Carrier Concentration vs Temp (in Si) 1 10 16 1 10 15 1 10 14 1 10 13 1 10 12 1 10 11 ni 1 10 10 T 1 10 9 1 10 8 1 10 7 1 10 6 1 10 5 1 10 4 1 10 3 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 T Temperature (K) Therefore the conductivity of a semiconductor is influenced by temperature

Increasing conductivity The conductivity of the semiconductor material increases when the temperature increases. This is because the application of heat makes it possible for some electrons in the valence band to move to the conduction band. Obviously the more heat applied the higher the number of electrons that can gain the required energy to make the conduction band transition and become available as charge carriers. This is how temperature affects the carrier concentration. Another way to increase the number of charge carriers is to add them in from an external source. Doping or implant is the term given to a process whereby one element is injected with atoms of another element in order to change its properties. Semiconductors (Si or Ge) are typically doped with elements such as Boron, Arsenic and Phosphorous to change and enhance their electrical properties.

Semiconductor materials

Extrinsic Material By doping, a crystal can be altered so that it has a predominance of either electrons or holes. Thus there are two types of doped semiconductors, ntype (mostly electrons) and ptype (mostly holes). When a crystal is doped such that the equilibrium carrier concentrations n 0 and p o are different from the intrinsic carrier concentration n i, the material is said to be extrinsic. Donor impurities (elements of group V): P, Sb, As Acceptor elements (group III): B, Al, Ga, In When impurities or lattice defects are introduced, additional levels are created in the energy bands structure, usually within the band gap. Total number of electrons III Al 13 The valence and conduction bands of silicon with additional impurity energy levels within the energy gap. IV Si 14 V P 15

Extrinsic Material donation of electrons An impurity from column V introduces an ntype material Donation of electrons from a donor level to the conduction band energy level very near the conduction band in Ge or Si. This level is filled with electrons at 0 K, and very little thermal energy is required to excite these electrons to the conduction band. Thus, at about 50100 K nearly all of the electrons in the impurity level are "donated" to the conduction band. Such an impurity level is called a donor level, and the column V impurities in Ge or Si are called donor impurities. From figure we note that the material doped with donor impurities can have a considerable concentration of electrons in the conduction band, even when the temperature is too low for the intrinsic EHP concentration to be appreciable. Thus semiconductors doped with a significant number of donor atoms will have n 0 >>(n i,p 0 ) at room temperature. This is ntype material.

Extrinsic Material acceptance of electrons Ptype material Acceptance of valence band electrons by an acceptor level, and the resulting creation of holes. Atoms from column III (B, Al, Ga, and In) introduce impurity levels in Ge or Si near the valence band. These levels are empty of electrons at 0 K. At low temperatures, enough thermal energy is available to excite electrons from the valence band into the impurity level, leaving behind holes in the valence band. Since this type of impurity level "accepts" electrons from the valence band, it is called an acceptor level, and the column III impurities are acceptor impurities in Ge and Si. As figure indicates, doping with acceptor impurities can create a semiconductor with a hole concentration p 0 much greater than the conduction band electron concentration n 0 (this is p type material).

Donor and acceptors in covalent bonding model Donor and acceptor atoms in the covalent bonding model of a Si crystal. In the covalent bonding model, donor and acceptor atoms can be visualized as shown in the Figure. An Sb atom (column V) in the Si lattice has the four necessary valence electrons to complete the covalent bonds with the neighboring Si atoms, plus one extra electron. This fifth electron does not fit into the bonding structure of the lattice and is therefore loosely bound to the Sb atom. A small amount of thermal energy enables this extra electron to overcome its coulombic binding to the impurity atom and be donated to the lattice as a whole. Thus it is free to participate in current conduction. This process is a qualitative model of the excitation of electrons out of a donor level and into the conduction band. Similarly, the column III impurity Al has only three valence electrons to contribute to the covalent bonding, thereby leaving one bond incomplete. With a small amount of thermal energy, this incomplete bond can be transferred to other atoms as the bonding electrons exchange positions.

Si Increasing conductivity by doping Si As Si Si Si Si Si Si Si + + Si As Si As Si Inject Arsenic into the crystal with an implant step. Arsenic is Group5 element with 5 electrons in its outer shell, (one more than silicon). This introduces extra electrons into the lattice which can be released through the application of heat and so produces and electron current The result here is an Ntype semiconductor (n for negative current carrier) Si Si + Si Si Si Si + Si

Increasing conductivity by doping Si Si + Si Si + Si Si Si + Si + + + Si Si Si B Si Si B + + Si Si B Si + Si Si Si Inject Boron into the crystal with an implant step. Boron is Group3 element is has 3 electrons in its outer shell (one less than silicon) This introduces holes into the lattice which can be made mobile by applying heat. This gives us a hole current The result is a Ptype semiconductor (p for positive current carrier)

Calculation of binding energy We can calculate rather simply the approximate energy required to excite the fifth electron of a donor atom into the conduction band (the donor binding energy) based on the Bohr model results: E m q * 4 n 2 2 2K * where m n * is the effective mass typical of semiconductors ( m n 0.12m m 0 = 9.11x10 31 kg is the electronic rest mass), reduced Planck s constant and K 4 0 r is a where ε r is the relative dielectric constant of the semiconductor material and 0 = 8.85x10 12 F/m is the permittivity of free space. 0

The Fermi level Electrons in solids obey Fermi Dirac statistics: f ( E) 1 1 exp ( E E where k is Boltzmann s constant k=8.62 10 5 ev/k=1.38 10 23 J/K. ) / F kt (4.6) The following consideration are used in the development of this statistics: 1. indistinguishability of the electrons, 2. electron wave nature, 3. the Pauli exclusion principle. The function f(e) called the FermiDirac distribution function gives the probability that an available energy state at E will be occupied by an electron at absolute temperature T. The quantity E F is called the Fermi level, and it represents an important quantity in the analysis of semiconductor behavior. For an energy E = E F the occupation probability is f ( E F ) 1 exp ( E F E F ) / kt 1 1 11 1 2 (4.7) This is the probability for electrons to occupy the Fermi level.

The Fermi Dirac distribution function At T=0K f(e) has rectangular shape the denominator of the exponent is 1/(1+0)=1 when (E<E f ), exp. negative 1/(1+)0 when (E>E f ), exp. positive The Fermi Dirac distribution function for different temperatures At 0 К every available energy state up to E F is filled with electrons, and all states above E F are empty. At temperatures higher than 0 K, some probability f(e) exists for states above the Fermi level to be filled with electrons and there is a corresponding probability [1 f(e)] that states below E F are empty. The Fermi function is symmetrical about E F for all temperatures. The probability exists for state E above E F is filled state E below E F is filled f(e F + E) [1 f(e F E)] The symmetry of the distribution of empty and filled states about E F makes the Fermi level a natural reference point in calculations of electron and hole concentrations in semiconductors. In applying the FermiDirac distribution to semiconductors, we must recall that f(e) is the probability of occupancy of an available state at E. Thus if there is no available state at E (e.g., in the band gap of a semiconductor), there is no possibility of finding an electron there.

Relation between f(e) and the band structure Electron probability tail f(e) Hole probability tail [1f(E)] In intrinsic material the Fermi level E F must lie at the middle of the band gap. In ntype material the distribution function f(e) must lie above its intrinsic position on the energy scale. The energy difference (E c E F ) gives a measure of n. For ptype material the Fermi level lies near the valence band such that the [1f(E)] tail below E v is larger than the f(e) tail above E c. The value of (E F E v ) indicates how strongly ptype the material is. The distribution function has values within the band gap between Eν and Ec, but there are no energy states available, and no electron occupancy results from f(e) in this range.

Electron and Hole Concentrations at Equilibrium The Fermi distribution function can be used to calculate the concentrations of electrons and holes in a semiconductor if the densities of available states in the valence and conduction bands are known. The concentration of electrons in the conduction band is n f ( E) N( E) de 0 (4.8) E c where N(E)dE is the density of states (cm 3 ) in the energy range de. The subscript 0 used for the electron and hole concentration symbols (n 0, p 0 ) indicates equilibrium conditions. The number of electrons per unit volume in the energy range de is the product of the density of states and the probability of occupancy f(e). Thus the total electron concentration is the integral over the entire conduction band. The function N(E) can be calculated by using quantum mechanics and the Pauli exclusion principle. N(E) is proportional to E 1/2, so the density of states in the conduction band increases with electron energy. On the other hand, the Fermi function becomes extremely small for large energies. The result is that the product f(e)n(e) decreases rapidly above E c, and very few electrons occupy energy states far above the conduction band edge. Similarly, the probability of finding an empty state (hole) in the valence band [1 f(e)] decreases rapidly below E v, and most holes occupy states near the top of the valence band.

Band diagram, density of states, FermiDirac distribution, and the carrier concentrations at thermal equilibrium Intrinsic semiconductor ntype semiconductor ptype semiconductor

The conduction band electron concentration is simply the effective density of states at E c times the probability of occupancy at E c : In this expression we assume the Fermi level E F lies at least several kt below the conduction band. Then the exponential term is large compared with unity, and the Fermi function f(e c ) can be simplified as 1 f ( Ec ) exp ( Ec EF )/ kt 1exp( E E )/ kt n 0 c F N c exp ( Ec EF ) / kt It can be shown that the effective density of states N c is n N f ( E ) (49) 0 c c N c p 2m 2( h N * n 2 kt [1 ) 3/ 2 f ( E 0 v v )] (410) Since kt at room temperature is only 0.026 ev, this is generally a good approximation. For this condition the concentration of electrons in the conduction band is (411) (412) Values of N c can be tabulated as a function of temperature. As Eq. (411) indicates, the electron concentration increases as E F moves closer to the conduction band. By similar arguments, the concentration of holes in the valence band is where N v is the effective density of states in the valence band. (413)

The probability of finding an empty state at E v, is 1 1 f ( Ev ) 1 exp ( EF 1 exp ( E E ) / kt p 0 v F Nv exp ( EF Ev )/ kt N v 2m 2( h * p 2 kt ) 3/ 2 E v ) / kt The effective density of states in the valence band reduced to the band edge is (414) for E F larger than E v by several kt. From these equations, the concentration of holes in the valence band is Eq. (415) predicts that the hole concentration increases as E F valence band. (415) (416) moves closer to the The electron and hole concentrations predicted by Eqs. (411) and (415) are valid whether the material is intrinsic or doped, provided thermal equilibrium is maintained. Thus for intrinsic material, E F lies at some intrinsic level E i near the middle of the band gap, and the intrinsic electron and hole concentrations are (417) n N exp ( E E ) kt, p N exp ( E E ) kt i c c i / i v i v /

The product of n 0 and p 0 at equilibrium is a constant for a particular material and temperature, even if the doping is varied: ( E E ) / kt )( N exp ( E E ) / ) n0 p0 ( N c exp c F v F v kt ( E E ) / kt N N exp E kt N c N v exp c v c v g / (418a) n i p i ( E E ) / kt )( N exp ( E E ) / ) ( N exp kt c N c N v exp Eg / kt c i v i v (418b) In Eqns. (418a) and (418b) E g = E c E v. The intrinsic electron and hole concentrations are equal (since the carriers are created in pairs), n i = p i ; thus the intrinsic concentration is n i N c N v exp( E 2 0 0 i g / 2kT ) (419) The constant product of electron and hole concentrations in Eq. (418) can be written conveniently as n p n (420) This is an important relation, and we shall use it extensively in later calculations. The intrinsic concentration for Si at room temperature is approximately n i = 1.5 x 10 10 cm 3.

Comparing Eqs. (417) and (419), we note that the intrinsic level E i is the middle of the band gap (E c E i = E g /2), if the effective densities of states N c and N v are equal. There is usually some difference in effective mass for electrons and holes (e.g. for Si m n* =0.26m 0, m n* =0.39m 0 ), however, and, therefore, N c and N ν are slightly different as Eqs. (412) and (416) indicate. Another convenient way of writing Eqs. (411) and (415) is n p ni exp ( EF Ei ) / kt 0 0 ni exp ( Ei EF ) / kt (421) (422) obtained by the application of Eq. (417). This form of the equations indicates directly that the electron concentration is n i, when E F is at the intrinsic level E i, and that n 0 increases exponentially as the Fermi level moves away from E i toward the conduction band. Similarly, the hole concentration p 0 varies from n i, to larger values as E F moves from E i toward the valence band. Since these equations reveal the qualitative features of carrier concentration so directly, they are particularly convenient to remember.

Conductivity of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Semiconductors nq n p n 2 0 0 i For Si n = 0.135 m 2 /Vs, p = 0.048 m 2 /Vs; for Ge n = 0.39 m 2 /Vs, p = 0.19 m 2 /Vs.

Conductivity of Extrinsic Semiconductors Typical carrier densities in intrinsic & extrinsic semiconductors Si at 300K, intrinsic carrier density n i = 1.5 x 10 16 /m 3 Extrinsic Si doped with As typical concentration 10 21 atoms/m 3 : Majority carriers n 0 = 10 21 e/m 3 ; Mass action law: n i 2 = n 0 p 0 Minority carriers: p 0 = (1.5 10 16 ) 2 /10 21 = 2.25 x 10 11 holes/m 3 Conductivity: Majority carriers: n = 10 21 x0.135x1.6x10 19 (e/m 3 ) (m 2 /Vs) (As C) =0.216 ( cm) 1 Minority carriers: p = 2.25x10 11 x 0.048 x1.6x10 19 = 0.173x10 10 ( cm) 1 Conductivity total total = n + p 0.216 ( cm) 1

Conductivity of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Semiconductors: Effect of Temperature Illustrative Problem: calculate of Si at room temperature (20 o C 293 K) and at 150 o C 423 K).

Summary Intrinsic semiconductors ntype Doped semiconductors n p n 2 0 0 i ptype n 0 ni exp ( EF Ei ) / kt p 0 ni exp ( Ei EF ) / kt

pn Junction The interface separating the n and p regions is referred to as the metallurgical junction. For simplicity we will consider a step junction in which the doping concentration is uniform in each region and there is an abrupt change in doping at the junction. Initially there is a very large density gradient in both the electron and hole concentrations. Majority carrier electrons in the n region will begin diffusing into the p region and majority carrier holes in the p region will begin diffusing into the n region. If we assume there are no external connections to the semiconductor, then this diffusion process cannot continue indefinitely.

Diffusion Let us assume that we have two boxes one contains red air molecules while another one contains blue molecules. This could be due to appropriate types of pollution. Let us join these 2 boxes together and remove the wall between them. Each type of molecules starts to move to the region of their low concentration due to the concentration gradient in the middle. Eventually there would be a homogeneous mixture of two types of molecules.

pn Junction This cannot occur in the case of the charged particles in a pn junction because of the development of space charge and the electric field. As electrons diffuse from the n region, positively charged donor atoms are left behind. Similarly, as holes diffuse from the p region, they uncover negatively charged acceptor atoms. These are minority carriers. The net positive and negative charges in the n and p regions induce an electric field in the region near the metallurgical junction, in the direction from the positive to the negative charge, or from the n to the p region. The net positively and negatively charged regions are shown in Figure. These two regions are referred to as the space charge region (SCR). Essentially all electrons and holes are swept out of the space charge region by the electric field. Since the space charge region is depleted of any mobile charge, this region is also referred to as the depletion region Density gradients still exist in the majority carrier concentrations at each edge of the space charge region. This produce a "diffusion force" that acts the electrons and holes at the edges of the space charge region. The electric field in the SCR produces another force on the electrons and holes which is in the opposite direction to the diffusion force for each type of particle. In thermal equilibrium, the diffusion force and the Efield () force exactly balance each other.

pn Junction builtin potential barrier No applied voltage across pnjunction The junction is in thermal equilibrium the Fermi energy level is constant throughout the entire system. The conduction and valence band energies must bend as we go through the space charge region, since the relative position of the conduction and valence bands with respect to the Fermi energy changes between p and n regions. Electrons in the conduction band of the n region see a potential barrier in trying to move into the conduction band of the p region. This potential barrier is referred to as the builtin potential barrier and is denoted by Vbi (or V 0 ). The builtin potential barrier maintains equilibrium between majority carrier electrons in the n region and minority carrier electrons in the p region, and also between majority carrier holes in the p region and minority carrier holes in the n region. The potential Vbi maintains equilibrium, so no current is produced by this voltage. The intrinsic Fermi level is equidistant from the conduction band edge through the junction, thus the builtin potential barrier can be determined as the difference between the intrinsic Fermi levels in the p and n regions.

pn Junction An applied voltage bias V appears across the transition region of the junction rather than in the neutral n and p region. Of course, there will be some voltage drop in the neutral material, if a current flows through it. But in most pn junction devices, the length of each region is small compared with its area, and the doping is usually moderate to heavy; thus the resistance is small in each neutral region, and only a small voltage drop can be maintained outside the space charge (transition) region. V consider to be positive when the external bias is positive on the p side relative to the n side. The electrostatic potential barrier at the junction is lowered by a forward bias V f from the equilibrium contact potential V 0 to the smaller value V 0 V f. This lowering of the potential barrier occurs because a forward bias (p positive with respect to n) raises the electrostatic potential on the p side relative to the n side. For a reverse bias (V=V r ) the opposite occurs; the electrostatic potential of the p side is depressed relative to the n side, and the potential barrier at the junction becomes larger (V 0 + V r ). The electric field within the transition region can be deduced from the potential barrier. We notice that the field decreases with forward bias, since the applied electric field opposes the buidin field. With reverse bias the field at the junction is increased by the applied field, which is in the same direction as the equilibrium field.

+ Apply voltage/electric field Si + + Si + Si Si B Si Si B + Si + Si +V V Si As Si Ptype Si Si Si + + + Si As Si As Si + Si + Si + Si + + Si Si + Si B Si + + Si Si Si Si + Ntype + + + + + +

Modulators of conductivity Just reviewed how conductivity of a semiconductor is affected by: Temperature Increasing temperature causes conductivity to increase Dopants Increasing the number of dopant atoms (implant dose) cause conductivity to increase. Holes are slower than electrons therefore ntype material is more conductive than ptype material. These parameters are in addition to those normally affecting conducting material, Cross sectional area Length Resistance Resistance

Silicon Resistivity Versus Dopant Concentration 10 21 10 20 Dopant Concentration (atoms/cm 3 ) 10 19 10 18 10 17 10 16 10 15 ntype ptype 10 14 10 13 10 3 10 2 10 1 10 0 10 1 10 2 10 3 Electrical Resistivity (ohmcm) Redrawn from VLSI Fabrication Principles, Silicon and Gallium Arsenide, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

PN Junction: No electrical bias applied Si Si B Si B Si Si Si As Si Si B Si Si As Si As Si Si As B Si Si B Si Si Si Si As Si Si Si B Si Si Si Si Si As Si Ptype Mostly B & free holes Ntype Mostly As & free electrons Diffusion effects The holes and electrons move from area of high concentration to areas of low concentration. Holes & electrons annihilate each other to form an area depleted of free charge. This is known as the depletion region and blocks any further flow of charge carriers across the junction

Physics of the Depletion Region When n and p type material are placed in contact with each other, the electrons diffuses into the ptype region in order to equalise the Fermi levels. This loss of electrons from the ntype material leaves the surface layer positively charged. Similarly the ptype material will have a negatively charged surface layer. Thus an electric field is established which opposes the diffusion of electrons when the Fermi levels are equal (dynamic equilibrium is established)

Size of the depletion region This can be calculated solving Poisson s Eqn. for the voltage distribution across the layer. The resultant equation shows that Where N is the dopant concentration and l the length on the p and n type sides. The length is given as ) ( 1 2 0 d a d a n N N N N e V l ) ( 1 2 0 d a a d p N N N N e V l p a n d l N l N

PN Junction = Capacitor p N D Ptype [semiconductor] Ntype [semiconductor] Depletion region, barrier to free flow of current from P to N insulator Basically it forms parallel plate capacitor V Q C The capacitance per unit area of the junction can be defined as: 2 1 0 2 1 2 2 1 d a d a N N N N e V C

PN Junction = Diode BUT PN is no ordinary capacitor, actually a diode Forward Bias: Shrink depletion region, current dragged through the barrier +V V D p N Once the difficulty of getting through the depletion region has been overcome, current can rise with applied voltage (Ohm s law) Reverse Bias: Grow depletion region, current finds it more and more difficult to get through the barrier Little current flows because barrier too high V +V D + p N However increasing voltage further high electric field Depletion region eventually breaks down reverse current